Proposal to change recruitment rules: Concern among CPWD engineers as govt plans to consider outsiders for DG post

According to the draft, the CPWD DG will be appointed on “deputation”, as opposed to the process followed now where the senior-most candidate is usually promoted to the post. The draft also says there will be one post of DG, subject to variation dependent on the workload.

What has many engineers worried is that officers from outside the CPWD will be eligible to apply – a first in the 170-year history of the organisation. The draft says officers holding posts of special secretary or equivalent and additional secretary or equivalent up to the age of 58 years can apply for the CPWD DG post.

A selection committee comprising the NITI Aayog CEO, MoHUA secretary, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways secretary and an “eminent outside expert in the field to be appointed by the ministry with the approval of the minister” will assess the applicants, the draft says. The tenure would be two years, but can be extended on a case-to-case basis, it says.

Officers from four categories — civil engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering and architecture — would be eligible. The services included are Central Engineering Service, Border Roads Engineering Service, Military Engineering Services, Indian Railway Service of Engineers, Indian Defence Service of Engineers, Indian Naval Armament Service and Central Architectural Service. According to a MoHUA official, the proposal is aimed at bringing competence into the selection criterion, in addition to seniority. The official added that it was only a proposal as of now and a final decision would be taken after taking into account the stakeholders’ views.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, several senior CPWD engineers expressed concern over the move. The CPWD DG at present rises in the ranks and gets the top job after decades of experience in the organisation, which helps as the role of DG is “largely administrative, not technical”, said one of the engineers.

Another engineer said it would have been better if other organisations, like the Railways, MES and BRO, were also opened up to all engineers, including from the CPWD, rather than the CPWD DG post being the only one open to outsiders. A third engineer said the move was being viewed with concern as it would limit the chance of a CPWD engineer becoming DG. That being said, the engineer added that opening up the job for outsiders could lead to better quality candidates as opposed to the present system where only seniority matters.

A retired top CPWD official said in the long-run, the move could prove damaging for the CPWD as talented young engineers won’t have much to look forward to when they join the organisation. The official suggested that a selection of the best candidates from the CPWD, irrespective of seniority, should be done, instead of inviting applications from outside. “It is sad for the prospects of engineers. Young people will not join the CPWD when their chance of getting a secretary-level post is reduced. If it has to be done, it should be reciprocal. Let CPWD engineers apply for the top posts in other organisations,” the official said.